Wednesday, May 11, 2005

Renting a Flat

Here are some of the things you may want to know about renting a flat or a house in NZ.

First of all, you need to decide which city and suburb you’ld want to live. You have to consider accessibility to shops, workplace, schools and public transport. Kailangan mo rin alamin ang peace and order situation ng area. Baka nga mura ang rent, pero, madalas naman ang mga nakawan at maraming graffiti. Magtanong-tanong ka. Alam ng karamihan ang mga streets/areas na notorious sa mga kabalbalan. The thing to remember, though, is that you won’t find a perfect place. You have to compromise and in the end it is only you who can make the final decision.

Once, you’ve decided on the suburb or suburbs, browse for rental properties in the classified ads. Go to the offices of real estate agencies. Meron silang section solely for rentals. If they have none available, you can leave your contact details with them and they'll find a property for you. Another source is the internet and below are some websites that you can visit.

May statistics sila ng market rent ng bawat lugar. You’ll see the minimum, maximum and the average rent for each area for each type of dwelling. The example below shows the information for Glenfield, Auckland. The prices given are weekly rent in NZ$.

What are your rights and obligations as a tenant? How about the landlord? Pwede ka ba niyang palayasin o taasan ng rent anytime? There are laws about renting that you might want to familiarize yourself with before signing any agreement. The best source for this is again the Tenancy Serrvices. They have online brochures like:

I’m not going to repeat here what’s contained in these brochures. I leave it up to you as homework. I’ll just list down some general tips and pointers:

1. Ask the landlord who pays for water and wastewater? (In Auckland, it used to be that the tenant pays for water while the landlord pays wastewater (wastewater is a separate charge for the disposal of used water). But now it is more common for the tenants to shoulder both).

2. If there’s a lawn or garden, clarify from the landlord who’s going to do the lawn mowing/gardening? There is no rule for this. It’s between the tenant and landlord to agree on.

3. Note down the water and electricity meter readings together with the landlord on the date of moving in.

4. Call the power company prior to moving in to arrange for electricity supply.

5. Call the phone company prior to moving in to arrange for a phone connection.

6. It pays to get a home contents insurance to protect you from lost of valuables against burglaries especially in areas where this is common. Burglars often target Asian migrants new to a place because they know they keep cash and jewelry in their homes. DON'T KEEP BIG AMOUNTS OF MONEY OR JEWELRIES AT HOME! May kaibigan kami, bagong dating dito, dala nila ang kanilang life savings in US$. Pinasok ang bahay nila. Ubos ang US$. The insurance can repay the lost of appliances, but it's difficult to claim for lost of cash and jewelries. Better be safe than sorry.

7. If you don't feel safe with the security of the house, try to negotiate the installation of a security system (burglar alarm) with the landlord, if there is none yet. The issue of security is more prevalent in some suburbs especially in some parts of Auckland. Sa ibang lugar, this may not even be an issue.

8. Check if the property has an external TV antenna. If there is none and the reception using an indoor antenna is weak, you may want to arrange with the landlord for an antenna to be installed. But it’s up to you to negotiate who pays for the installation.

9. This one is quite important. Be acquainted with your neighbors right away. Even before signing any rental agreement, talk to the next door neighbors. Kilatisin mo ang mga nakatira sa paligid. Kung mga mukhang gangster at addict, baka it’s not worth moving to the place. Importante ang may peace of mind ka sa lilipatan mo. I've heard horror stories before na kapitbahay pala ang siya pang nagnanakaw sa kanila. Make an effort to say "good morning" or "good day" when you see them. Such a simple thing, but goes a long way in making you feel at ease. If you're at least in talking terms with your neighbors, you’ll feel relaxed and at home with the place right away.

Hanep sa timing ang blogpost niyo! Pinag-uusapan pa lang namin ni husband ko about renting in NZ and whether we could afford a house in the future. ang problema lang eh fuzzy pa ang new zealand sa utak namin since not one of us has been there, so we don't even have an idea kung san magse-se-settle. Sabi ko sa asawa ko wellington nalang kaya kasi maraming IT jobs dun, sabi niya according sa isang survey, #8 sa best cities to live in ang Auckland. (#14 naman ang Wellington).

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About

Reflections on life, my past and anything under the sun as well as a journal of how it is to live in Aotearoa, "The Land of the Long White Cloud", which is New Zealand, from the viewpoint of a middle class Filipino family. Mga hinagpis, kakwelahan, ka-homesick-an ng isang Pinoy sa lupa ng mga ibong walang pakpak (kiwis) na mahaba ang tuka.

About Me

tipikal na pinoy workng in the IT industry. pero hindi mukhang nerd (that's what you think, sabi naman ng bruha kong anak). may maganda, mabait at napaka-sarap maglutong asawa at isang napakatalinong (mana sa ina), nagdadalagang anak. i've been in IT since the early 80's (tanda na no?). have worked in Saudi Arabia, then in Cal,USA, before finally settling in Auckland in '96.

Living in NZ

Disclaimer:Information provided here are to be taken as valid only as at the date the post was written. The information may not necessarily be complete, accurate or up to date. Readers are encouraged to check the veracity of any informaton with the appropriate authorities and should not accept anything here as professional or legal advice.